Reaction to the Kawhi Leonard Story, Contract Updates, and Most Improved Player Predictions With Kirk Goldsberry

The Zach Lowe Show

The Ringer

Basketball, Sports

4.8 • 2K Ratings

🗓️ 4 September 2025

⏱️ 77 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Zach and Kirk begin by dissecting the reporting surrounding Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers (1:55): They go through the timeline of events, what people around the league are saying, and what the NBA might do about it. Then they rip through the Cam Thomas qualifying offer (43:59), the P.J. Washington extension (49:44), and yet another All-Star Game format change (55:50). Finally, they close with an early look at who might be in contention for Most Improved Player this season (1:02:52). Host: Zach Lowe Guest: Kirk Goldsberry Producers: Jesse Aron, Jonathan Frias, and Steve Ceruti Get started today at HubSpot.com/AI Unfold more with the new Galaxy Z Fold7. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome in to the Zach Lowe show on a Thursday morning and just when you think the NBA's been dormant, nothing's been happening.
0:07.3	Do I have to watch a Eurobasket more closely and dig into the X's and O's?
0:11.6	Bam!
0:12.5	The news starts in a flood.
0:15.0	And we got Kurt Goldsbury.
0:16.4	Worked for the Spurs back in the day, back in the Kauai Leonard era, notably to talk about a burgeoning
0:22.5	potential scandal with the L.A. Clippers, thanks to Pablo Tori's podcast, Pablo Tori finds out,
0:28.1	did the clippers circumvent the cap directly, indirectly at all in inducing Kauai Leonard
0:34.4	to stay with the clippers in 2021 and 2022 and beyond? We're going to dive into the nitty gritty of that. I've been on the phone with owners and lawyers and GMs and people all over the league. I've been reading the CBA scouring the NBA constitution, trying to figure out what, if anything, could happen to the Clippers here? Could it be nothing? Could it be severe? The Clippers are denying all charges of circumventure. We're going to dive into that. PJ Washington's extension. My friend of me, Cam Thomas, signed his qualifying. Offers, that good for him? Bad for the Nets. Bad for the Nets. Bad for the Nets. Doesn't mean anything for the Kaminga Grimes Giddy trio still hanging out. We'll talk most improved player. We'll talk all-star format
1:11.6	changing again. If you can't keep track of what the all-star game is now, I don't blame you.
1:15.6	I can't. Last year it was a complete catastrophe. All of that coming up now on The Zach Lowe
1:20.5	Show. This episode of the Zach Lowe show is presented by HubSpot. Using only 20% of your
1:27.3	business data is like going from a starting five to a starting one.
1:30.3	Good luck with that.
1:31.2	But that's how most businesses operate today using only 20% of their data unless you have HubSpot.
1:37.2	Where all the data hidden in emails, call logs, and chat messages turns into insights to grow your business.
1:42.4	Because having all the data makes all the difference.
1:45.0	Learn more at HubSpot.com.
1:51.7	Welcome to the Zach Lowe Show.
1:58.7	It's Thursday morning.
2:00.5	And just when you thought the NBA was dead, Kirk Goldsbury. It's not dead anymore. Kirk Goldsbury, what team did you work for when you worked in the NBA? The San Antonio Spurs, a small market team down here in Texas, Zach. Any notable young stars on that team where it kind of went haywire for you while you were there? We got, of course, Dejante Murray.
2:19.5	Is that the player you're thinking of?
	...

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